Johnny Carino’s restaurant in Boise closes

Employees and customers of the Boise Johnny Carino’s restaurant learned the bad news Monday: the eatery was closing for good.

A spokesman for Johnny Carino’s Texas-based parent company, Fired Up Inc., said the restaurant wasn’t making enough money, so the company decided to shutter it when its lease ended. Fired Up will shift its focus instead to a more profitable Johnny Carino’s restaurant in Meridian.

The Boise Italian restaurant, at 1700 S. Entertainment Ave. near the Edwards Boise movie theater, had 54 employees.

Marketing Director Ryan Bearden told the Statesman on Tuesday that all Boise employees were offered jobs at the Meridian location, which is near the intersection of Fairview Avenue and Eagle Road. Johnny Carino’s has no other Treasure Valley outlets.

“We felt it would be stronger for us if we consolidated locations,” Bearden said. “We’ve got that [Meridian] store for a couple more years at least and ... we have every intention to remain at that location.”

This story was originally published March 22, 2016 at 2:31 PM with the headline "Johnny Carino’s restaurant in Boise closes."